Malawi

Chambo is a whole, gutted fish of the endemic Lake Malawi cichlid species Oreochromis karongae (and closely related O. lidole / O. squamipinnis), grilled over charcoal or deep-fried and served with minimal seasoning to foreground its naturally sweet, mild flesh.

A dense Malawian bread of maize flour baked in a clay pot over an open fire.

A raw, uncooked relish of chopped fresh tomato and thinly sliced red onion with chilli and coriander, brightened with lemon.

A stiff, glutinous cooked dough made from cassava flour, a coarser and denser staple closely related to maize nsima, eaten with relishes along Lake Malawi.

Lightly sweetened deep-fried dough triangles from East and Southern Africa, often scented with coconut or cardamom near the lakes.

A Malawian relish of mixed wild and cultivated leafy greens, blanched and then sautéed with groundnut (peanut) oil, served as a side to nsima.

A pungent Southern African relish of tiny sun-dried lake fish — most often small cyprinids or sardine-like species from Lake Malawi or Lake Kariba — fried crisp or simmered with aromatics into an intensely savory accompaniment to nsima.

A Malawian sweet biscuit made from mashed sweet potato and flour, spiced with cinnamon and pan-fried or baked.

A Malawian relish of dried fish simmered in a thickened groundnut (peanut) sauce, served as the savory accompaniment to nsima.

Mtedza is dry-roasted groundnuts ground to a coarse powder, stirred into Malawian relishes and porridges as a thickening, fat-rich enricher.

Ndiwo ya Nkhwani is a Malawian relish of pumpkin leaves stewed with groundnut flour, tomato, and a touch of baking soda, eaten with nsima.

A Malawian okra relish in which okra is cooked down with tomato and onion until it turns glutinous and slippery, eaten as a sauce-like accompaniment to nsima.

Ndiwo ya Usipa is a Malawian relish of tiny Lake Malawi usipa fish simmered in a tomato, onion, and chilli sauce, eaten with nsima.

A Malawian dish of free-range village chicken slowly braised with onion and tomato, often enriched with groundnut (peanut) flour into a thick savory sauce.

Nsima is a stiff, smooth maize-flour porridge twice-cooked to a dense, pliable consistency and shaped into mounds, served as the carbohydrate base of virtually every Malawian meal alongside relish (ndiwo).

A Malawian everyday relish of dried beans slow-cooked with onion and tomato into a thick, soft pot eaten with nsima.

A Malawian lightly fermented, non-alcoholic drink made from cooked maize porridge soured with malted millet or sorghum flour, served cool and slightly tangy.

Malawian deep-fried fritters made from mashed ripe banana bound with flour into a sweet, golden batter.